Global MPA map

The Marine Protection Atlas

integrates science-based assessments that measure progress toward protecting 30% of the global ocean in fully and highly protected areas by 2030.

0%
of the ocean
is fully or highly protected according to The MPA Guideas of most recent assessment on
0%
of the ocean
is protected according to WDPA / ProtectedPlanetas of

US Undermines Global Conservation Targets with Monument Roll Back

With the re-opening of large swaths of the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument to commercial fishing, US waters have lost a third of their strongly protected waters and erased 0.3% of the area counted towards effective global protection. With more attacks on monuments expected, the world is moving farther away from reaching critical marine coverage of 30% by 2030. Read more here.

MPAs at threat due to National Monument deregulation in 2025

The Marine Protection Atlas (MPAtlas) is building a comprehensive global database of marine protection to identify, track, and advocate for fully and highly protected areas.

MPAtlas uses The MPA Guide's science-based framework to identify marine protected areas Stage of Establishment and Level of Protection, which are linked to expected conservation outcomes. MPAtlas shows how much of the ocean is currently fully or highly protected, highlights where MPAs are not yet implemented on the water, and much more. By focusing on the quality, in addition to the quantity, of marine protection, MPAtlas supports international progress toward effective marine conservation.

The MPAtlas assessment database is continually growing and will be regularly updated when new assessments are available. For visualization and data analysis, our assessment data is linked to geospatial boundaries from the World Database on Protected Areas and other sources. The dataset does not contain boundaries for all global MPAs, only those that have been assessed.

The MPA Guide: a framework to achieve global goals for the ocean

The MPA Guide is a groundbreaking science-driven, policy-relevant framework to categorize marine protected areas and link their outcomes for nature and people.

MPA Guide assessment of marine protection

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Largest marine protected areas

89%
of global marine protected area is in the 100 largest marine protected areas.
36%
of the 100 largest marine protected areas is in implemented fully / highly protected areas.
11%
of global marine protected area is in over 18,000 smaller marine protected areas.
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Blue Parks

Blue Parks aim to unite a global ocean refuge system of effective MPAs that covers 30% of the ocean to safeguard marine biodiversity. The Blue Park Criteria are science-based standards for conservation effectiveness, which provide blueprints for effective MPAs and a framework for evaluating the biodiversity benefits of MPAs. By awarding MPAs that meet the Blue Park Criteria, the Blue Parks initiative incentivizes and accelerates effective marine protection.

Learn more about Blue Parks.

27

marine protected areas have received Blue Park Awards.

These areas cover roughly 11% of the total marine protected area in the world.

Blue Parks around the world:

Blue Parks map

New Blue Parks in 2024

Three marine protected areas (MPAs) won prestigious Blue Park Awards for exceptional marine wildlife conservation at the 9th Our Ocean Conference in 2024. Tristan da Cunha (UK), Gitdisdzu Lugyeks Marine Protected Area (Kitasoo Xai'xais First Nation), and Siete Pecados Marine Park (Philippines) join a growing network of 30 awarded Blue Parks around the global ocean that have met the highest science-based standards for conservation effectiveness. The three new Blue Parks cover a total area of 757,403 square kilometers (292,435 sq. mi.). Their addition brings the Blue Park Network to a total of 3.5 million square kilometers (1,351,358 sq. mi) of ocean area effectively protected in the waters of 23 countries.

The Marine Protection Atlas is made possible through the generous support from:

Arcadia Fund logo
Dona Bertarelli Philanthropy logo
Oceans5 logo
Winslow Foundation logo
Packard Foundation logo

It was created by the Marine Conservation Institute in partnership with Astute Spruce, LLC.

Please support the work of the Marine Protection Atlas: the only comprehensive database that identifies and tracks fully and highly protected MPAs throughout the world.

Contact Us© 2024 Marine Conservation Institute